Aldi pledges to halve food waste by 2030

Leading food retailer Aldi has joined a campaign to cut food waste in the UK and Ireland by 50 percent over the next 12 years.

The supermarket is joining the Champions 12.3 coalition, a group of governments and businesses, aimed at achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).

Specifically, the 12.3 target refers to the SDG goal of “halving per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels” by 2030. It also binds signees to reducing food losses along its production and supply chains.

Aldi managing director of corporate responsibility Oliver King said: “Food waste is one of our sector’s most pressing issues, and reducing it is everyone’s responsibility. By joining this network we hope to work with others in the industry to tackle this collectively by sharing data and resources.”

Aldi believes a family of four could save an estimated £60 per month by reducing the amount they throw away. The retailer, which is reportedly the fifth-largest in the UK, already works with food charities, such as FareShare and FoodCloud, to donate thousands of tonnes of unsold food to vulnerable people in the UK and Ireland. This has amounted to the equivalent of 2.8 million meals since 2015.

It also ensures none of its food waste goes to landfill and aims to reduce the attending environmental impacts of waste per person by 20 percent.

Dr Liz Goodwin from the World Resources Institute told trade publication FoodBev: “The challenge of tackling global food loss and waste is something we all need to work on and it’s good to see Aldi recognising the role they can play. We need more companies to set targets consistent with UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, to measure and report, and then take action to reduce food loss and waste”.

The Love Food Hate Waste campaign has also being working for over a decade to raise awareness on the issue.